In times of civil war, it is not just a country that becomes divided against itself, but individual families as well. The Brother versus Brother unit teaches students about the personal impact of the Civil War by focusing on the microcosm of one Pennsylvania family, the Draytons.
In November of 1860, following the election of Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Drayton wrote a letter to his brother Percival. In his letter, Thomas predicts that war is imminent and explains his loyalty to the South. Although he knows it will place him in opposition to the rest of his family, Thomas intends to join the Confederate rather than the Union Army. His letter details some of his reasons and highlights the differences and areas of tension between the antebellum North and South.